It’s pretty clear that 2020 is going to be the year of virtual meetings, virtual conferences — well, virtual everything. Virtual life is no longer a temporary solution to a moment in history. It’s time for us to accept the reality that remote work is here to stay and embrace it. That means we need to reconsider how we present ourselves to be as professional as possible during webinars and other virtual presentations and meetings, especially when potential customers or investors are involved.
This month, Denver Startup Week (DSW) announced all of its sessions will be done virtually. And that means if your company or CEO wants to present as a speaker, you will need to be organized, prepared and polished for the big day. Here’s what you can do.
Having weeks to prepare for this presentation would be a luxury, but we know you’re busy keeping your business running. So, if you have limited time to prepare, here are three ways to help you get ready:
- Master the basics. No matter whether it’s Zoom, GoToWebinar or some other solution, explore and learn the basic processes related to scheduling, recording, collecting registration information, screen-sharing, managing presenters’ audio and video, etc. Not every platform is as user-friendly as it could be, and it will take at least a few practice runs to fully get up to speed on how to create a seamless experience.
- Develop your presentation early. By planning your content early on, you afford yourself time to proofread the slides and receive feedback on the look and feel of the presentation. Is the content too small? Is it too wordy? Are there misspelled words? When you develop your slides early, you have time to correct any mistakes and rework formatting that might be necessary.
- Maximize the return on your time. Each webinar creates a lot of opportunities for follow-on content creation, which can bring added visibility and boost your SEO. For example, take 30-second snippets from your webinar recording and post them to your social channels. If you have a great response, use the recording and create a blog post out of it.
- Make yourself camera-ready. If you’re used to presenting to a live audience, a webinar format will be quite a change for you. With webinars, there are basic logistical considerations:
- Are you well lit? In other words, you shouldn’t have a shadowy face. Extreme backlighting can be one culprit (closing shades can help) and so can poor overhead lighting. Make sure your face can be seen!
- Is your camera at eye level? It should be. Leaning down and into your screen to present is never a good look.
- Confirm outside noises won’t be a factor by having another adult watch your kids, sending the dog outside and putting a note by the doorbell telling Amazon not to ring it.
Improve Your Zoom in 150 Seconds
At Comprise, we know you can’t be a master at everything when you’re running or launching a company. Our webinar production team can support your webinar from start to finish or just be there to make sure the big event goes off without a hitch. If you need some help, we’re always happy to connect.Want to deliver a best-in-class webinar experience for key audiences that can build and extend your brand? Led by our Emmy-winning TV news producer, Compriseagency’s roster of experienced public relations and digital marketing professionals will develop your message, execute a streamlined webinar to improve your webinar game and fill in technical gaps.
